Tension: 1) The act or process of stretching something tight. 2) The interplay of conflicting elements.

“Realize that change is here, and embrace it. Don’t just try to survive. Take the challenge to thrive.” – Melanie Sojourner

“Keep focused on the substantive issues. To make a decision means having to go through one door and closing all others.” – Abraham Zaleznik

Churches that don’t focus on a few things flounder in sideways energy.  They end up adding so many different things to their ministry that no individual effort gets the resources or attention it requires.  The light of the church is dispersed to the point where the it hardly appears to be reflecting at all.  Focus is good.

If a church isn’t reinventing itself all the time it becomes stale and stagnant. Stuck in the rut of a “known strategy and approach” it quickly drifts towards mediocrity. Rather than being a vibrant and relevant force the church becomes stuck in it’s ways and mired in blandness.  Flexibility is good.

Is there a path for the extremely focused church that is open and flexible to new approaches all the time?

How do you focus your team on what the church is becoming while at the same time push for reinvention all the time?

I feel like I live this in tension all the time.  I want to stay focused on a few things because I feel like we need to improve our game so much.  However, I see new approaches all the time and wonder if we could be modifying that for our environment.

What about you? How do you live out this tension?  Let the conversation begin!